Two Defendants Arrested for Conspiring to Illegally Export Weapons to South Sudan

A federal criminal complaint was unsealed yesterday in the District of Arizona charging Abraham Chol Keech, 44, of Utah, and Peter Biar Ajak, 40, of Maryland, with conspiring to purchase and illegally export millions of dollars’ worth of fully automatic rifles, grenade launchers, Stinger missile systems, hand grenades, sniper rifles, ammunition, and other export-controlled items from the United States to South Sudan, in violation of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) and the Export Control Reform Act (ECRA).

“As alleged, the defendants sought to unlawfully smuggle heavy weapons and ammunition from the United States into South Sudan – a country that is subject to a U.N. arms embargo due to the violence between armed groups, which has killed and displaced thousands,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Department of Justice will not tolerate the illicit export of weapons overseas, and we will hold accountable those who would violate our laws.”

“Sanctions and export controls help ensure that American weapons are not used internationally to destabilize other sovereign nations,” said U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino for the District of Arizona. “We thank our law enforcement partners, including Homeland Security Investigations, for continuing to use their legacy customs enforcement authority to protect the public.”

According to court documents, in July 2018, in response to the conflict between South Sudan’s Transitional Government of National Unity and opposition forces, the United Nations Security Council imposed an arms embargo on South Sudan. The Security Council has renewed the arms embargo every year since 2018, most recently in May 2023. Under U.S. law, specifically the AECA and ECRA, it is unlawful to export weapons and ammunition to South Sudan absent authorization in the form of a license from the U.S. Department of State or the Department of Commerce. It is the policy of the United States to deny licenses and approvals to export to South Sudan defense articles, such as automatic rifles, grenade launchers, and missile Stinger systems.

As alleged in court documents, between at least February 2023 and February 2024, Keech and Ajak sought to illegally purchase weapons and related export-controlled items from undercover law enforcement agents and smuggle those weapons and items from the United States to South Sudan through a third country. The defendants knew that South Sudan was subject to an arms embargo and that exporting weapons and ammunition from the United States to South Sudan without a license from the U.S. government was illegal and would violate U.S. law. For example, the defendants openly discussed the illegality of the transaction, expressed the need to be discreet, and agreed to pay a risk fee for the weapons because of the illegal nature of the arms sale. In addition, to facilitate the smuggling scheme, the defendants discussed disguising the weapons as humanitarian aid and paying bribes.

As part of the scheme, the defendants further sought to conceal from financial institutions and others the source and purpose of the funds used to purchase and smuggle the illicit arms. For example, the defendants agreed to an arms contract for nearly $4 million worth of weapons and related items and requested a “fake contract” in the same amount in “consulting services” and items, such as “communications equipment,” related to “human rights, humanitarian, and civil engagement inside South Sudan refugee camps.” The defendants then caused funds to be transferred through an intermediary company identified in the fake contract to complete the purchase. 

If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison for conspiring to violate the AECA, up to 20 years in prison for conspiring to violate the ECRA, and up to 10 years in prison for smuggling goods from the United States. 

The Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Department of Defense’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, and the Department of Commerce’s Office of Export Enforcement are investigating the case, with valuable assistance provided by the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona and the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the case.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.